Happy Graduate!

All they way back in mid-May my sister, Michelle, graduated from Xavier University (my own alma mater)!  Unfortunately, I didn't have time to share the photos I took of this momentous occasion, you know what with planning a secret wedding and all, so I wanted to share them now since I am beyond proud of my big sis!

Here's the thing you need to know about my sister...she's kind of amazing!!  She's been a travel agent for like 22 years now (can you guess where I got my passion for travel from?!) and an awesome one at that.  Before I moved to Cincinnati in 2003, Michelle was not only working full-time as a travel agent but also part time at a local pub.  Then she opened her own tea house, The Tea Cozy Cottage, where she served high tea two weekends a month (all the while still doing the travel agent thing), until December 2011.  And throughout all of this she was taking classes part time at Xavier.  We were actually lucky enough to take a couple classes together while I was going to school there, which was pretty cool...even if she drove me a bit crazy sometimes!  And on May 17th she finally graduated with her Associates degree!  It was such a big accomplishment that has been many years in the making and I couldn't be more proud of her, her never-ending energy, and her admirable drive and passion!

 See the adorable red-head in the middle who looks so excited...that'd be my seester!

Family and friends ready to cheer on Michelle.

 Oh, seester, you are so adorable!

  Making her way up to the stage!

 Do you think she's excited!?!

 It's time!

 Yay!

After graduation we had a little party for Michelle at Swaim Park in Montgomery.  Antoine and I had this sweet banner printed for the party...

 Amanda and Aaron being adorable!

And a moment later...hahahahaha!  I have no words.

  Michelle posing with our mom and dad.  And yes, she did wear her cap and gown for the rest of the party and I think most of the day!

 Christian and the happy graduate!

Swaim Park.

 The best friend bunch, back together again!  I love these ladies so much!

We definitely had a good time celebrating my sis and her big accomplishment!  As you can tell from the photos she was all smiles, all day (though that's her most of the time)!  Then the following day, over breakfast, Antoine and I told my parents, sister, and brother-in-law that we were eloping in Hawaii!!  That's right, they had no clue until the weekend before we left for Hawaii!  Antoine and I had been nervous all weekend (and for a long while before, to be honest) and when Sunday came around we were relieved that no one was upset and everyone was just happy for us!  So, all in all, it was a pretty eventful weekend!

Happy Birthday!

Today is Antoine's 33rd birthday!!  I'm sad that I have to be at work today, so I thought I'd do a little birthday tribute to my favorite person on the planet, my partner and husband, Antoine.

 Obviously, I love him and I'm kind of crazy about him...I mean, I did just married him!  But let me tell you why I'm so nuts about him.  First and foremost, he makes me smile!  He has a knack for it actually. 

 And he makes me laugh!  He says the silliest, craziest, most adorable things all the time! 

 I am so eternally grateful that I get to share my home and life with him!  To have his love and support each day means more to me than I can put into words.  I'm not the easiest person to live with, I'm pretty opinionated and stubborn, and Antoine is the exact opposite.  He's laid back and easy going, but he also gets excited about things we do together, which just makes everything so much more special and meaningful! 

So happy birthday to my love, my travel buddy, my best friend, and my furr-babies' dad!  I love you so much and I am so glad you were born and that I found you!  Happy birthday, Tran!


photos:  apple picking '13, Cheese trying to snag some of Antoine's dinner (Instagram), our trip to Seattle '13, Austin City Limits '13

Hawaii: Part 12 (Pearl Harbor)

Happy Friday everyone! I don't know about you, but I'm ready for the weekend!  I'm also very ready for this post...the last of the Hawaii posts.  I/We loved Hawaii and it really is a gorgeous place, but I think I overloaded myself with photos (and you too)...and that's saying a lot for me!  Editing down my photos into small, concise posts has never been my strong suit.  And I'm sure it never will be, that's not me.  I get too attached.  And with these Hawaii photos I felt even more attached to them since it was more than just your usual trip.  Hawaii in general is kind of a big deal, but the fact that it was our wedding/honeymoon just made the photos even more special.  And today I'm going to share one of my favorite places we visited on Oahu, one that in the sea of superficiality that is Honolulu felt the most genuine and honest, Pearl Harbor.  If you're looking for a recap, here you go:

We Eloped, Panoramas, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Sea Turtles, Part 8, Part 9, Our Elopement photos, Part 10, & Part 11

Since our flight out of Honolulu wasn't leaving until 9pm we decided to take full advantage of our last day in Hawaii.  After we checked out of our airbnb place in Kailua, we stopped at this turn off and Koko Crater Botanical Garden for a bit before heading to brunch in Waikiki (sorry, I can't remember the name of the place).  Next we had made reservations for a tour of the USS Arizona at 1pm.  We were running a little ahead of schedule, but decided to head over there anyway and see what we could check out before our tour-time.  Normally, tour tickets for the Arizona are free, but they are on a first come basis so you are advise to get them the day before or early in the day.  I decided to make reservations ahead of time and to book the narrated audio-tour, which is about $7.50 per person.  I don't think either Antoine or I have ever done a audio-tour before, but we were so glad we did!  We were able to do about half of the audio-tour before our 1pm tour-time and then we finished up the rest after we got back from the Arizona.

This is the "Tree of Life" statue that sits in the main promenade.  This symbol is also found on either side of the USS Arizona Memorial in the shrine room.

This is a model of the USS Arizona.  It was part of one of the two exhibits galleries/museums which are included in the tour and are part of the audio-tour.  One is called "Road to War" and the other "Attack".  

This is actually a detonated Japanese torpedo that was dredged up from the bottom of the harbor in the 1990s. 

Leave it to me to go to a US memorial and find the flowers.  I can't help wanting to find a little beauty in such a sad place.

Before heading out to the Arizona Memorial you watch a very poignant video in the Pearl Harbor Memorial theater, which gives you background information about that day and about the memorial itself.  Then two US Navy officers take you out to the memorial on a boat.

Part of the USS Arizona that sits above the surface.

It was overcast and sprinkling by the time we got to the memorial, but you could still see parts of the Arizona that have becoming a living reef.

This is the shrine room.  On the wall are the names of all the entombed men.

On either side of the room, placed in front of the wall of names, are two marble pieces.  These list the names of all the survivors of the attack on the USS Arizona who have since passed away and had their ashes entombed in the Arizona; an option open to all the survivors.

The Arizona continues to this day to leak oil into the harbor, about 2-9 quarts a day, which gives the water around the memorial and the battleship a noticeable sheen.  Antoine and I actually spotted a bubble of oil rising to the surface.

A view of the memorial from the outside.

Once we got back on land we finished our audio-tour and went to the gift shops.

A red-crested cardinal.

The anchor from the USS Arizona.

The USS Bowfin.

We probably spent at least 3 or 4 hours in the Pearl Harbor/USS Arizona complex.  Like I said, the audio-tour was amazing.  It's narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis and contains a lot of great information, including interviews from survivors, who share their experience and memories of the attack.  If you ever find yourself in Oahu, I would highly recommend going to the USS Arizona Memorial...it's an enlightening and heart-wrenching experience.

Hawaii: Part 11 (Pineapples & Plumeria)

As you can tell from all my other posts, when it comes to vacations Antoine and I tend not be the most touristy of tourists.  And that was especially the case when we went to Hawaii.  We didn't go to the beaches and lay out in the sun for hours.  We didn't go surfing, snorkling, or anything like that.  We didn't go to a luau or the Polynesian Cultural Center (because it's run by Mormons...nothing against Mormons, but that just took away all the authenticity for me).  Instead, we went hiking, went to botanical gardens, and did the non-touristy things we typically enjoy when we go on vacation...with the exception of three things.  We did get tiki drinks in Honolulu before heading home, we did visit Pearl Harbor (I'll cover that in my last Hawaii post), and we did go to the Dole Plantation.  Really, the Dole Plantation was THE most touristy thing we did on our entire trip, at least in my book!  But we knew that is was going to be...and really, we were mainly going for the dole whip!

Here's the thing about Dole, the main stuff is free...the gift shop, cafe, and pineapple garden.  Where they get you is with all the other stuff...train ride, pineapple maze, etc.  None of which we did, so our trip was free...well, except for the stuff we bought in the gift shop (which is horrendously overpriced) and the delicious, delicious pineapple soft serve!

Antoine showing off his hula and his uni-boob!

Pineapples everywhere!

We were totally in awe of these trees, which were all over the property...I mean, look at them!  They're so pretty!

After we checked out Dole, we walked next door to a smaller, more quaint pineapple plantation which was completely free and had gardens filled with kitschy stuff like this...

I made him pose and then he made me.  Is this married life?!

...and foo dogs...

...and roses

...and a giant pineapple, of course!

On our last day in Hawaii, before heading to Honolulu, we stopped at this pull-off for a bit to take in the view of the windward coast one last time...

Then we headed over to Koko Crater Botanical Garden, another one of Hawaii's beautiful, free gardens/parks.  We didn't stay too long since we hadn't had breakfast yet or put on enough sunscreen...but that didn't stop me from taking a ton of flower pictures...

Did I mention that Koko Crater has an entire grove of plumerias?!  It smells amazing!

I think this might be one of my favorites!

Alright, one more post to go!  It's the final stretch, you're almost there!  Stay tuned tomorrow!  Then instead of Hawaii posts it'll go back to the usual: flowers, bees, and maybe some pictures of a certain basset hound named Cheese.